Thread: Dual purpose rod help please?

Originally Posted by cowroy

Hey guys, I have searched but couldn't find any threads about a dual purpose rod for kings and also other fish such as stripers. I do a lot of freshwater striper fishing with a bomber long a casting the banks with a very slow retrieve for stripers and hybrids here in East TN. I need at least a 7.5' rod, Med Heavy, 1 piece with a fast tip, but I don't want it to be real heavy. 8' rod would be even better. I am willing to spend about $200 for the right rod. Thanks in advance for the help!

What pound test and type of line do you want to use?
In case you didn't look @ BPS, they offer a one-piece 7'6" in the 10-17# class (now on sale for under $90).
Offshore Angler? Inshore Extreme® Spinning Rods | Bass Pro Shops

Even though it is rated as "medium" it is more what I would describe as a 'lightweight medium heavy' and has a fast tip (taper).
This would pair up well with a Penn Battle 5000 with 15#-17# mono or 20# braid.
I already have the 8'6" and throw plugs with it from the pier and surf (with 30# braid) and it is a beast!

BTW, the 7'6" IE is the next rod I am going to buy for pier & surf ;-)

Originally Posted by FinChaser

I would go with whatever the good folks ay J&M recommend, which will most likely be the same as #r's recommendation; Penn Battle 6000.
J&M has some great combos too!

Sounds good! I love combos cause most of the time it means $avings.

Originally Posted by Pier#r

What pound test and type of line do you want to use?
In case you didn't look @ BPS, they offer a one-piece 7'6" in the 10-17# class (now on sale for under $90).
Offshore Angler? Inshore Extreme® Spinning Rods | Bass Pro Shops

Even though it is rated as "medium" it is more what I would describe as a 'lightweight medium heavy' and has a fast tip (taper).
This would pair up well with a Penn Battle 5000 with 15#-17# mono or 20# braid.
I already have the 8'6" and throw plugs with it from the pier and surf (with 30# braid) and it is a beast!

BTW, the 7'6" IE is the next rod I am going to buy for pier & surf ;-)

I don't know how I missed those rods other than seeing the extreme part and assuming it was the regular extreme rods. They don't have those on the shelves at my local Bass Pro. Their normal extreme rods are my favorite freshwater spinning rods for everything from Shellcracker's and crappie to walleye and smallmouth.

June 21st can't get here quick enough!

Young man welcome aboard. You will not go wrong with the advice given by people on here and pay special attention to the Pier#r. For him know him stuff. Could that be a bama hat?

I have one of the offshore angler inshore extreme rods in the 7 ft model paired with the inshore extreme reel. Its has tons of back bone and the reel is pretty tough too. I fought a jack last year for about 40 minutes and the rod held strong. Im confident that I could have ended it quicker if I weren't so worried about losing the 20 dollar yo zuri in its mouth. I dont know that id use it as my king rod but the strength of the rod wouldnt be my main concern if I were to hook one.

Originally Posted by coach

Could that be a bama hat?

That would be complete and total blaspheme for me to wear a Bama hat. I love the pier, but I bleed orange man It's a Bass pro hat, but the color is right.

Pier#er is right on with advising a 10-17. A light weight medium heavy is perfect for stripers and for kings and pretty much anything else.

One of the best I've used is the G-Loomis Greenwaters. Ideally, you'd have better guides installed later, but the stock ones do great if you take care of them.

I personally prefer the Batson blank, 963 for what you're describing. I have some rods used for the exact versatility you are describing and do the same thing myself. You're welcome to play around with them when you get here and feel the difference--just message me. Both are a little above 200, but well worth the investment, I assure you.

Penn Battles are power houses, but can be heavy and throw a light rod off balance. I'd suggest getting a Shimano Saros or even a Sahara if you want lighter weight and staying within a budget. Depends if you want to fish horsing style or with finesse. I've used both, and neither disappoint.

Boy, you guys make it hard on a fella to decide. There is no doubt i'll have to wait til I get there and make up my mind. I will get there a couple hours before J&M closes, so that will be plenty of time to go take a look and feel for what I am after. I'll know it when I get a hold of it. Viking Guy, i'll definitely shoot ya a message when I get there.

My dad in Kentucky fishes Lake Cumberland all the time for stripers and brings a couple rods with him when he visits us at the beach. When I've fished the lake with him this last summer we were using a 8' St. Croix Mojo Surf 8-17lb line, mod-fast action. It's rated 3/4-3oz but would cast a Redfin a country mile. You're looking at about $170 for that particular rod. Hate to throw another option into the ring but asking a bunch of tackle gurus what they'd recommend is like opening Pandora's box.

I love hearing all the feedback! This is exactly what the forum is for. I thought I had searched about everywhere I could search for what I was looking for in the perfect rod, but out of what has been suggested so far I never found any of them in my own searches. I looked around on the Internet at various Tackle stores for about two months before I actually decided to come here and start a thread. I know you guys answer a lot of questions about rods and reels, but trust me it is so worth it to someone like me that really needs the help! I actually think I know of a place I can go handle the St. Croix rod. But, obviously being so far away from the coast limits bigger inshore type rods.

Croixs break... easy. I've seen their tips fly off in casting.

Be careful selecting those brittle blanks.

I have some, and while they're decent, they've been sitting idle for 2 years.